Thunder Cave ~The Masai By: Amanda

What do the Masai have to do with the book Thunder Cave??? In Thunder Cave, Jacob meets a Masai boy, Supeet, who helps Jacob find his father and helps him survive in Kenya, Africa. The Masai in the story Thunder Cave believed they could perform ceremonies that would do good things such as making the long rains occur during the long periods of drought.

The Masai Diet The basic item of the Masai diet is fresh curdled milk, stored and carried in decorated gourds. The curdled milk is sometimes mixed with the blood from the jugular vein (one of the three veins in the neck) of a young bull or cow Main source of meat- sheep and goats Cattle are rarely slaughtered but when they are they are usually used for ceremonies.

Masai appearance and how they dress. They are usually tall and lanky Usually wear bright red cloth and lots of beads (both men and women) Women and children leave their heads bald Warriors braid their long hair and dye it red using a red clay

Masai Ceremonies - warrior- head shaving -senior boy Lots of different types of ceremonies some are: - warrior- head shaving -senior boy - marriage -junior elder - meat-eating - etc. The Masai cultures have ceremonies that express self- determination A boys life begins in the Masai society following all of the ceremonies

Masai Villages and Housing The villages are called enkangs The huts they live in are called kraals About 8-20 huts in a village Each village is surrounded by a grass (long-thorned grass) fence which keeps the cattle fenced in

Fun Facts! The Masai people are believed to have originated from Lake Turkana in Northern Kenya around the 14th and 16th cenuries The language the Masai speak is called Maa Some things the Masai women are in charge of are the beadwork, fetching water, and milking the cows

Bibliography http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/cultural/oldworld/africa/masai.htm http://flamingosafaris.com/masaiceremonies.htm http://www.kenya-advisor.com/masai-warrior.html http://www.masaikenya.org/masai.html